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GOP wins Fla. House seat in test of health care overhaul

By Michael J. Mishak and Tamara LushAssociated Press

Posted:
03/11/2014 12:01:00 AM CDT

Updated:
03/11/2014 10:57:47 PM CDT

Candidate David Jolly greets supporters as he arrives at the Indian Shores Town Hall to place his vote Tuesday in the special election for Florida 13th Congressional District in Indian Shores, Fla. (AP Photo/The Tampa Bay Times, Cherie Diez)

CLEARWATER BEACH, Fla. -- Republican David Jolly defeated Democrat Alex Sink on Tuesday in a Tampa-area House district where President Barack Obama's health care overhaul got its first test before November's midterm elections and both sides spent millions auditioning national strategies.

With almost 100 percent of the vote counted, Jolly had 48.5 percent of the vote to Sink's 46.7 percent. Libertarian Lucas Overby had 4.8 percent. The election was to replace 42-year Republican Rep. CW Bill Young, who died in October of cancer, and the evenly divided district had been considered a toss-up.

The implications of the dueling messages for the midterm elections inspired both parties to call in star advocates like former President Bill Clinton and former vice presidential candidate Paul Ryan, in addition to blanketing the district with ads, calls and mailings. More than $11 million has been spent on the race, according to the Sunlight Foundation, a nonprofit group that tracks government information.

Jolly's election night headquarters in Clearwater Beach erupted into loud cheers as it became clear he was the winner. In his victory speech, Jolly simultaneously struck a conciliatory tone and expressed gratitude for his mentor, Young, and Young's family. Jolly was introduced by former "Price is Right" game show host Bob Barker, via video.

Jolly didn't mention the issue that dominated much of the campaign -- the president's health care package -- and instead said that Pinellas County must work together.

"This race is not about defending a broken agenda in Washington or advancing a broken agenda in Washington.

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This race is about serving the people in our own community," he said. "Let's dispense with the rancor and vitriol of the last five months."

In St. Petersburg, Sink's party was subdued. Backed by her adult children, Sink began her concession speech by thanking her campaign team and the thousands of volunteers who helped her congressional bid. She spoke to a couple hundred stoic supporters in a half-empty ballroom at a lakeside Hilton in St. Petersburg.

"We don't know what the future holds," she said, "but I'll do what I've always done and continue to serve my community.

The battle for Florida's 13th District seat was a prequel of sorts to the national fight this year over who controls Congress in the last two years of Obama's final presidential term. The House is expected to remain under Republican control. But in the Senate, Republicans are hoping to leverage Obama's unpopularity and his health care law's wobbly start to gain the six seats required to control the 100-member chamber.

That made the race in Florida a pricey proving ground for both parties heading into November elections.

Jolly, a former Young aide backed by Republicans and outside groups, campaigned on repealing the health care law, saying in one ad that Sink would undermine Medicare because of Democratic-passed cuts to programs under "Obamacare."

Meanwhile, Sink, Florida's former chief financial officer and the Democratic nominee for governor in 2010, painted Jolly as an extremist who wants to "take us back" to when people were denied coverage due to existing conditions. She pledged to "to keep what's right and fix what's wrong" in the health care law.